THIRD SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY
Sunday January 26, 2025
John 2:1-11 NKJV
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!” This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.
If our Lord had preached a sermon after He turned the water into wine, what might He have said? For one thing, He likely would have told the people that the world’s joy always runs out and cannot be regained, but the joy He gives is ever new and ever satisfying. In the Scriptures, wine is a symbol of joy. The world offers the best at the first, and then, once you are “hooked,” things start to get worse. But Jesus continues to offer that which is best until we one day enjoy the finest blessings in the eternal kingdom (Luke 22:18). But our Lord would certainly have a special message here for His people, Israel. In the Old Testament, the nation is pictured as “married” to God and unfaithful to her marriage covenant (Isaiah 54:5; Jeremiah 31:32; Hosea 2:2ff). The wine ran out, and all Israel had left were six empty waterpots! They held water for external washing, but they could provide nothing for internal cleaning and joy. In this miracle, our Lord brought fullness where there was emptiness, joy where there was disappointment, and something internal for that which was only external.
(Warren Wiersbe – The Bible Exposition Commentary)
Lord Jesus Christ, maker and giver of all abundance,
Help us today to turn from the empty things of this world that we seek joy and fulfillment in. The words spoken through Jeremiah the prophet ring true of us today: “My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns – broken cisterns – that can hold no water” (Jeremiah 2:13 NKJV).
Turn our hearts to you, O God!
Turn our minds to you, O Lord!
You alone give full and abundant life.
You alone give full and abundant joy.
You alone give full and abundant peace.
Forgive us – forgive me – for clinging to this world; for seeking satisfaction and fulfillment in that which is transient and fleeting; for preferring the emptiness below to the abundance that is from above – from You. Change my heart, O God, make it ever true. Change my heart, O God, may I be like you (Eddie Espinoza).
Amen.
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Corinthians 4.15).
Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies
